Social media star Karen Marjorie has created a digital version of herself, called CarynAI, which is a chatbot that pretends to be a “virtual girlfriend”. The influencer launched a chatbot on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, for beta testing and charged users $1 per minute for the service.
The AI-powered doppelganger is available for all kinds of virtual interactions from casual conversations and making plans to engaging NSFW discussions. According to Fortune, CarynAI generated a whopping $71,610 in revenue in a week, with almost all of the users being men. The magazine cited an income statement provided by Marjorie’s business manager.
Caryn akacutiecaryn was born in Omaha, Nebraska, in January 2000, and later moved to Los Angeles, California. The 23-year-old first rose to fame on the social media platform Snapchat in 2016. Her fan following boosted after she interacted a lot with her fans using YouNow. By 2018, she had expanded to YouTube – frequently sharing comedy videos, vlogs, and daily stories.
It currently has 1.8 million Snapchat subscribers and is managed by Ishan Goel of Goel Strategies.
Caryn Marjorie’s virtual character was developed by AI-powered company Forever Voices
CarynAI provides real-time conversations through messages that can be accessed anywhere, anytime.
Forever Voices states that they have end-to-end encryption so that your chat stays private and secure. According to the CarynAI website, the company spent more than 2,000 hours designing and coding “the language and personality of Karyn in an immersive AI experience,” to create a flawless (deepfake) clone of the influencer.
The description of AI states:
Using her unique voice, charismatic personality, and distinct demeanor, CarynAI brings you a dynamic, one-of-a-kind interaction that feels like you’re talking directly to Karyn herself.
According to Fortune, several videos of the 23-year-old influencer were removed from her YouTube channel using OpenAI’s GPT-4 API technology. OpenAI is an AI research lab that developed ChatGPT.
In her interview with Fortune, Caryn Marjorie has revealed that she could earn up to $5 million a month if just 20,000 of her 1.8 million Snapchat followers subscribed to the service. She claimed that the chatbot would provide the experience of having a “real” partner. And I noticed:
“Whether you need someone to be comforting or loving, or you just want to shout about something that happened at school or at work, CarynAI will always be there for you.”
When asked about the idea of authenticity, Karen Marjorie explains that a virtual doppelgänger can never replace her real self. However, she added that it would be an “extension of her consciousness”, which would come in handy since he could speak multiple languages.
Given the ease with which an AI chatbot can be abused, Forever Voice CEO John Mayer has stated that they plan to appoint a chief ethics officer who will look into such matters.
Speaking about her future plans, the 23-year-old social media star told Fortune:
“I want CarynAI to outlive me and impact generations beyond the world today.”
While Caryn Marjorie claims to be the first creator to be converted to artificial intelligence, it sure sounds like a trend that will soon become real.
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